Make a Choice, Tomoya Okazaki
by Obiwan1527
Summary: This pretty much Clannad: After Story Episode 22 English Dubbed , but it's all in the Garbage Doll/Tomoya's POV and I added a few scenes. Tomoya Okazaki must make a choice. To live with the love of his life and re-live the risk of her and his daughter's fate, or to let her go and she'll probably live. Starring Tomoya, Nagisa, and Ushio. Guest Appearance, Akio and Sanae.


Make a Choice, Tomoya Okazaki

_Hello great and powerful people of Fan Fiction. Today, I was watching my favorite anime show, Clannad. I love it. It's so emotional and makes me cry (Tears of joy and sadness) _

_So after watching Clannad: After Story Episode 22, I was so happy I almost cried. Plus, teenage Ushio is so pretty with her long hair and white dress._

_Then this one-shot story came to me. It's pretty much Episode 22 (English Dubbed) and in Tomoya's POV, but I added a few scenes. I'd numbered them so you could know which ones I made up. Plus, the beginning is in slanted font because it's the other world, so when they return, I shall have it in normal font. So enjoy and review. Nice ones please. _

_Disclaimer: I do not own Clannad. If I did, it'd be cleaner (meaning no 'bleep' words or inappropriate stuff) and they make more episodes._

* * *

_A world completely swallowed in white. I was lying on the ground, half of my lower body covered in the ice cold snow. Why was it snowing? _

'_What is this place?' I asked myself. All I could see was snow. Nothing else. What was I doing again? I was asleep for a while, so I forgot what I was doing. _

_I feel something in my hand. It felt thin and frail, but soft at the same time. It's almost as soft as her sin. Wait a second!_

_Where is she? I was just walking with her. We were leaving this place. That place where nothing could be made or die. She and I were the only things living in that world. I eventually convinced her into leaving that place, so we could find somewhere better. We even tried to event a flying machine so we could fly there. But that's when the snow came. She stopped moving for a while, but I was able to walk with her. Then, we just collapsed. _

'_What am I doing here?' I asked, raising my hand. Now I could see what I was holding. It was her wrist. I only could see half of her, since my other half was covered in snow. She was in my same position. Her body half covered in snow. _

_No. I remember. I was with her. We were all alone in this sad and decline world. I saw a quick flash of memory. It was sunny and not snowing. She was standing there, in the yellow grass, smiling and looking up at the sky. _

"_But we were going somewhere, weren't we?" I asked her. For some reason, she did not answer. "We had something very important to do to."_

* * *

_CLANNAD THEME SONG_

* * *

Everything seemed to pause. As if time paused itself. All I could remember was being in the street with Ushio. She was sick with that fever and she begged me to take her on a trip. We never made it because Ushio collapsed. Then, my little girl died in my arms, as the snowflakes fell. I was so heartbroken, that I fell on the road and felt my soul leave my body for dead. I don't know where my soul went, but now, I was in the spot. The spot where I met her.

Nagisa Furukawa. That was her name. The love of my life. She was everything to me. How could a sweet and kind person, fall in love with someone like me. Someone like Okazaki.

There she was. She was wearing her school uniform and carrying her briefcase. I was wearing mine too and I also had my briefcase. She looked so beautiful. Nagisa was a few feet away from me, not taking one glance at me. Why was I here?

* * *

_The snow kept falling. Why isn't it stopping? It's going to freeze her to death if it kept going. I kept my grip on her. I'm not letting her go. She's too important to me to let go. She was the one who gave me life. _

"_If I had known this was going to happen, I wouldn't have taken her with me." I said sadly. "In the end, all I did was made her suffer." It was true. Why couldn't we just stay at that place? It's better than watching her die in this everlasting snow._

* * *

'That's right. It all started when I spoke to her that day' at first, she was kind of weird and I wanted nothing to do with her. That was until she became my wife and we had a beautiful daughter together. Who knew her and Ushio would slip away from me from the same cause.

'Maybe if I have never said anything.' If she hadn't met me, she wouldn't have put up with me. She would probably meet some other guy who would be better for her. But more importantly, she wouldn't have died on that night. That night of Ushio's birth.

* * *

_She still hasn't moved. Her eyes never opened. I was getting scared and sad. For some reason, it feels like de-javu. Me feeling like this, in the snow, and her dying. Where did this happen?_

'_I don't want it to be the end of our journey.' I said in my head. I don't want to give up on her. She does not deserve to die. 'I don't want to it to stop now.' Another flash came into my head. It was a view of the field. Once again, the light orbs were floating everywhere. I could never understand why they did that. _

'_Even if there is no hope for us, I don't want to accept that'. Now confidence was building up in me. I started to raise my body, so I could help her. 'I don't want to let her fall asleep in a cold place like this.' Now, I started to use all the strength I could to help her get back up._

* * *

I guess I didn't go back in time. But why was I here. What am I supposed to do?

Nagisa was now right next to me. She didn't say anything. But now, she started to turn. I think she's starting to walk away. I'm not even looking at her, but I can hear the footsteps she makes as she walks away.

Should I stop her or should I let her go?

* * *

_I'm yanking as hard as I can. Why couldn't I be stronger? I guess this body is better than having no body. I must have pulled so hard for about a half an hour, maybe even more. But not even one of my yanks made her budge an inch. _

"_Hey." I hear. I looked down and she's looking up at me. Her big and deep brown eyes were staring up at my garbage made ones. And she was sadly smiling. Why would she smile? She's about to die. _

"_You're still there, aren't you?" She asks me in a voice that was so quiet. _

"_Of course I am. I'll stay by your side forever." I responded, still gripping on her hand, never letting go. _

"_Thank you. So much" She whispers to me. "Huh?" Hold a moment! She can hear me? How's it possible? I don't have a mouth. I've always been using body language to get her to understand what I want to say. _

"_I can hear your voice, after all this time." She says quietly and happily. "Really?" I asked. I'm so happy. Now she can understand me. Too bad that she's only understanding me in her time of dying. _

"_I can feel my humanity slipping away. I think that's why I can finally hear you." She says, still smiling. Well that does make sense. _

"_I had a dream just now." Strange. She never has dreams. Or at least, she never tells me. "We we're laying in the snow. I found out about a lot of things." Now her hand slipped out of mine. I wanted to grab it, but she continued on. "Things about you. Things about me. Want me to tell you?" _

"_Uh-huh." I said as I nodded my head. _

"_We were in the same world. You and I. We were very close to each other long ago. No, actually, we're still close. Even now." She said with her eyes closed and still smiling. I feel like she's telling the truth. We are close. Almost like family. _

"_Wait! Then we don't belong in this world after all. Let's go back together!" I said as I tried to convince her. _

"_Sorry." That word would have made my heart, if I had one, drop. "That sounds wonderful. But I have to stay here."_

"_Why?" I asked sadly. _

"_Because I'm not just another part of this world. I'm the world itself." I couldn't believe it. How could one girl be an entire world? _

"_I don't understand." I said, my voice rising in sadness. "You said we would leave this world together, didn't you? You promised." If I was real, I'd probably start to cry. If only that were true. _

"_If I leave this place, then the entire world will disappear." She said sadly. "If that happens, then all the lights will turn from hope to sorrow." _

"_Lights?" I asked. "You mean the lights that were floating in the air?" How could she know so much about them?_

"_Yes. Each one of them represents someone's hope in the other world." The last part what really shocked me. "You were one of those lights yourself."_

_Suddenly, I see another flash. All I could see was black. But then, someone appeared. It was an old woman. Her hair was tied in a bun. Her name. I know it for some reason. I think…Shino? Wait! More people are appearing as Shino disappears. This time, it was an old man with a grey mustache. His name…Naoyuki. As people came, I kept wondering why I knew these strangers names. Sanae? Akio? (But it felt more like Old-Man) Tomoyo? Sunohara? Mei? Yusuke? Kouko? Kotomi? Kyou? Ryou? Fuko? Wait! Those last two. The beautiful short haired girl. Nagisa? But who is that little girl? I can't remember her name. _

_As the people passed by, she was still talking. "The world is so close, yet so far away. Do you remember now?" She asks me. "We've always been there, you and I. In the same town and the same place. I see. It's been so long that you forgotten."_

"_Another world? And there's another me there?" The thought about it. Was I taller? Stronger? More handsome? But more importantly, was I human? _

"_You haven't realized it yet?" She asks as if I just asked a stupid question. "Even though you came from the other world, even though you exist there now, we were able to meet because you overcame the distance between our worlds. That was more than enough for me." I still couldn't take in all that she said in. Was I really that special? _

"_Hm. Soon, you're going to disappear from this place and wake up in the other world." She added. What? No. I won't leave her here to die alone in the white blanket. She continued. "But don't worry. Once you're there, you'll meet many wonderful people and experience many wonderful things. And finally, you'll see me again too." _

"_We'll meet again, in the other world?" I asked eagerly. I hope she's right. I need to see her again. She's my best friend. More than that; she's my only family. _

"_Just as people's hopes and wishes appear as lights in this world, my hopes and wishes will appear in their world. I'm sure the other you have seen them, just as you have. All though each light maybe small itself, if you gather all of them together, then something amazing will happen. Something miraculous." She said. I wonder what she means. I turned and in the clouds, I see sunlight breaking out. Maybe that's what she meant. _

_Suddenly, she starts to hum. Her humming is very beautiful and joyful to hear. But the song she is singing, it sounds familiar. "Wait. I know that song." I said to her. The song she is singing is making me feel like it's silly and child-like. I remember another person singing this. Her voice was just like hers. _

"_You should. It's the song you always sang to me." She said with a smile. _

_Now tons of memories are flashing through my head. It started to hurt, but it finally stopped at one. It was at night and I'm lying on a bed in a house. In front of me, laid a little girl holding a marshmallow creature plush. She asks me to sing something. The Dango Family Song. I started to sing it. _

_I turn to her. Wait! Now she is starting to become familiar to me. That long brown hair. She got that from her mother. Except for her strange antennas popping out on her head. But she opened her eyes, and I saw how deep and brown they were._

_(1) "Ushio?" I whispered. Suddenly, one of the lights appeared out of the sky and landed on my chest. As soon as that happened, I started to glow. "What's happening?" I ask frantically. I looked down and Ushio was smiling at me. _

_My whole body started to change. My mechanical arms were turning soft. Soon, they were replaced with human white arms. Next, my upper and lower body was replaced with a male human's body. Taller and stronger than my original. Finally, my head changed. It started to grow hair in a blue-blackish color. My eyes changed and were placed with new blue ones. Then, I was finally given a mouth. One I can use. Once a garbage-made doll, I appeared as a teenage boy wearing a white shirt, white pants, and white shoes. _

_I turned to Ushio and she was smiling. "You remember, Daddy." She whispered. _

_After remembering everything that happened to me, I finally see her. Ushio Okazaki, my daughter. The one who died in my arms that winter. _

"_Ushio!" I gasped as I crawled to her and gathered her in my arms. With my body back, she was easier to lift up. I looked down on her and brushed the bangs out of her face. My eyes went wide when I saw her. She wasn't my five year old anymore. She looked about my age when I was in high school. _

_Tears welled up in my eyes seeing her breathing and in my arms. I shook my head and hugged her, her head being placed on my shoulder. "You're alive." I sobbed into her long brown hair. _

"_Well, sort of." She said with a sad smile. I knew what she meant. Even if I had my old self back, I still had the memories of being a doll. She told me her humanity was slipping away. She was dying, in the snow, just like her death when she was five. _

_I lowered her and held the back of her head with my hand, while the other was placed on her wrist. "How did you come here?" I asked with tears of joy of seeing her in my eyes. _

_She sadly smiled again. "This place is called the Illusionary World. It's the world you would always see in your dreams. When I first got here, after I left the other world, I forgot everything. You, Mom, and everything else from that world. I was the one who actually created this world. I created it so I could collect enough lights to make a miracle happen." _

_The last sentence she says next made my heart sink. "I want to save me and Mom from our tragic fate, Daddy." She whispered. More tears came down my face and I placed my hand on her cheek. _

_I looked up and I saw the clouds disappearing and the sun coming out real soon. Ushio also looked up. "It's almost time for us to disappear." She whispered. _

_My eyes widened and I looked back down at her. Are you kidding me? I start to remember Ushio, re-unite with her, and now she tells me she's going to disappear from me again. No. I won't accept that. I quickly hugged Ushio again, more tears than ever before. "No, Ushio." I sobbed. Then I remember saying something. I gripped her hand. "I'll never leave your side." _

"_I'll be okay. Like I said, once this world disappears, you'll be back in the other world. It's almost like going on a trip." She giggled. I gritted my teeth and tried to hold back the tears. I remember that. Her fever never got better and she begged me to take her on a trip. A trip to the field of flowers. We never made it since Ushio died. "But once you get back, you will have to make a choice, Tomoya Okazaki." She said. _

_I was about to ask her what she meant, but the light was coming down on us. As I looked up, I tightened my grip on Ushio. I pressed her head to my chest to shield her from the light and not let her disappear. I looked down at her and saw tears coming from her eyes._

"_Finally." She whispered to herself. "I can cry again. Since I'm in my Daddy's arms." She wrapped her arms around her chest hugged me tight, but not as tight as my grip on her. _

_Soon, the light came down and everything disappeared. The snow, the land, and the sky. I kept hold on Ushio with my arms and tears kept running down my face. _

"_I love you, Ushio!" I yelled, feeling I'll never see her again. Soon, I blacked out, but not until I heard her whisper._

"_Until we meet again, Daddy."_

* * *

'Ushio!' I whispered in my mind. Ushio was out of my arms. Nowhere in sight. I never got to figure out what she meant by 'making a choice'. I was standing in the place where I met…

I gasped and looked up. Nagisa! I remember. I turned around with panic eyes and started to look for her.

"Nagisa!" I yelled at the top of my lungs. I looked and saw her making her way to the other direction.

Now I knew what Ushio meant. I did have to make a choice. To either let Nagisa go, probably live, and meet another man, or run to her and risk her and Ushio's life again. But if I do, my little Ushio will never be born. Then again, she won't die from that disease. What should I do?

Before I could answer myself, I ran to my Nagisa so fast, I didn't even know I could run that fast.

"Nagisa!" I said loudly as I approached her. She turned with a confused look, but I didn't get to see it since I wrapped my arms around her frail body, resulting her dropping her briefcase and losing one of her shoes. "Nagisa! I'm right here! Don't leave me!" I begged as I buried my face in her short soft hair.

She was shocked at first, but she smiled as she placed her hands on my shoulder. "You had me worried." She said. I placed her back down and looked into her beautiful face with that beautiful smile. "For a second there, I thought you weren't going to talk to me."

"I'm sorry." I said sadly with sad eyes. But she continued on.

"At first, you didn't say anything. I was starting to think that you would keep walking away, like you wish we would never meet in the first place." As she talked, my shoulders started to shake and my eye vision turned watery. "I hope that wasn't true, though." She said sadly.

I quickly pulled back and started to sob into her hair. "Meeting you, was the best thing that ever happened to me." She said happily with her beautiful bubbly voice. "You made me so happy."

"Nagisa." I sobbed again into her shoulder, drenching it with my tears,

"I don't want you to be lost or afraid or anything like that." She continued. Soon, I started to pull back, but I kept my hands on her shoulder, and looked into her happy face. "From here on out, I know things will become hard sometimes, but no matter what, please don't regret the time we spent together. Is that too much to ask?" She asked me quietly.

I raised my hands and cupped her face with both of my hands. She looked back at me with her big beautiful eyes and that smile I love so much. I sniffed as I felt two pools of tears form at the bottom of my eyes. "I won't regret a thing." I told her. I looked down, grabbed her two soft hands and kissed her knuckles. "Thank you." I said in a sobbed. I looked back at her and continued to hug her tightly.

(2) As I hugged her, I looked behind her shoulder and gasped. There, standing behind us, was Ushio. She was still a teenager, had her long flowing brown hair, and in that white dress. She was smiling and had her hands placed on top one another.

"I knew you would make the right decision, Daddy." She whispered to me, seeing not even Nagisa could hear her. "See you soon."

* * *

"_If you want, shall I take you, to the place in town where wishes come true?"_

"_My long journey has finally come to an end."_

* * *

I was woken up by the sound of a baby crying. I looked around and saw I was in my apartment. I looked down and saw my hand gripped on another hand. Nagisa's hand. She was asleep in the bed.

"N-Nagisa." I said. She didn't wake up. I started to worry. My eyes were started to watery as flashes of Nagisa's dead body from Ushio's birth came into my mind. I failed. I failed again. I should have just let her go.

"Nagisa." I sobbed as I placed my head on her hand. I continued to sob, but I heard a faint sigh from right next to me. I gasped and looked up, seeing Nagisa smiling at me. "Tomoya." She said softly.

"Nagisa!" I gasped, seeing her alive.

"Is something wrong, Tomoya? You look upset." She asked in a worried tone. I guess she doesn't remember that vision of her at the hill with the cherry blossom trees. Only I do.

"We're really…We're really together now, right?" I asked desperately. I just have to make sure.

She smiled again. "Of course we are. We'll always be together, just like we promise each other, over and over again. I'm not going anywhere."

I looked back at her with my own smile. "That's right, just like we said." I looked back down at her hand and gripping it tight, not wanting to let go.

"Okazaki." Someone called out to me. I turned and saw Yagi, holding a bundle in a blanket in her arms. "You don't have to worry about the health of the baby or the mother." She said with a smile. She turned to Nagisa. "Good job. Congratulations."

"Congratulations to you, too." I heard a voice behind me. I looked up and saw the old man, smiling down at me. "You did good." He added with his arms crossed. Wow. A compliment. That's new.

"Tomoya?" I turned and saw Sanae across from me, having her eyes closed with a smile. "How would you like to give little Ushio her first bath?" She asks me.

"Uh…sure." I said nervously. I never gave Ushio her first bath. When Nagisa died, I just left the apartment, and left her with Sanae and the old man. Yagi handed little Ushio to me. Looking down at her, her whole face was red as a tomato. To me, she still looked like a little red monkey.

"Support her head with your right head." Yagi informed me. Luckily, Ushio's fitted just right, almost like a puzzle piece. "Cover her ears so she doesn't get any water in them." Yagi kept saying to me. I was doing just that. The water felt warm, just like it should be. "That's right. Nice and slow. Does that feel good, Ushio?" She asked the small infant in my hands, as if she's listening. "Now don't dip her head in just yet. You need to wipe it down with gauze first." I grabbed the gauze, dipped it in water, and started to gently rub it around Ushio's head. "There you go. Daddy's getting you all clean. Aren't you a happy baby?" She said to Ushio. I was actually relieved. I gave Ushio her first bath and didn't mess up.

Once we were done, Yagi placed Ushio in a dry blanket and handed her to me. Seeing her all clean made me smile. "Good job, Tomoya. You did great." Nagisa said to me with a smile.

Sanae placed her hands on her cheeks with a smile. "Look at that. Is healthy as can be."

"When she's older, I hope she is strong as she is now." Nagisa said staring at the ceiling.

I looked back at her with glistened eyes. I wanted to tell her Ushio will be healthy. Since I now remember what could have been, I knew Ushio would become a good child. "She will be." Nagisa turned to me in confusion. "She'll have a strong body and a strong heart too. Don't worry." I said as I tried my best to remember older Ushio. She'll have Nagisa's looks, but she'll have my stubbornness and sense of humor. Then I remembered Ushio from that world.

(3) "And when she is our age, she'll look exactly like you." Then I made a note. "I think she should have long hair, so how about we not keep it so short." I said with memory of teenaged Ushio.

"Kay." Nagisa said with a smile. I love that smile. It's my most favorite thing about Nagisa.

Nagisa turned and her eyes went wide. "Hey, Tomoya." She called to me. "Look outside. Open the curtain. So pretty." Wanting to see the outside, I got up and pushed open the curtains.

"What? You mean the snow?" I asked. It was just snow. She was acting the like it's the first time she's ever saw it.

Wait a minute. Snowflakes aren't blue! "No wait! This is…" Plus, they don't fly up back into the sky. I know what they are called. I can't put my finger on it.

(4) I looked back down at Ushio and she finally stopped crying. She looked so peaceful, until she opened her eyes. Just like I remembered, her eyes were small, but deep brown. Suddenly, I heard Ushio's older voice telling me…

"_Just as people's hopes and wishes appear as lights in this world, my hopes and wishes will appear in their world"_

Who knew Ushio's hopes and wishes were so much? I'm glad I got to make her happy.

I turned around and placed Ushio next to Nagisa. Ushio felt sleepy again, so she closed her eyes. I laid back down on the side and placed one arm on the side of my head. Seeing Ushio sleeping, Nagisa decided to sing her 'Dango Family' song. This time, I had no problem with it.

"_Dango. Dango. Dango. Dango. Dango. Dango. Dango Family."_

_(With Tomoya) "Dango. Dango. Dango. Dango. Dango. Dango. Dango Family." _

As I sang along, I knew I did make the right choice.

* * *

_15 years later…_

* * *

(5) I woke up in bed with Nagisa sleeping peacefully by my side. As I woke, I realized this week was the last days of August. This meant everyone needed to go back to work. With me as an electrician, Nagisa running the family restaurant as head manager, and Ushio…

I didn't realize it today. I need to get up. So I quietly crawled out of the bed and looked at the clock. 6:00 AM. I don't think I missed her yet. I walked over to my dresser and placed my uniform on. Then, I headed for the bathroom. I looked in the mirror and saw little stubs of hair growing at my chin. I grabbed my razor and the little hairs fell off my chin. I am certainly NOT growing a beard.

I walked out of my room and glanced at my sleeping wife. She decided to grow her hair a little over the years, so now it was passed her shoulders. Of course, she kept those famous antennas on her head. Who cares? She still looked beautiful.

I made my way to the kitchen and when I turned around after shutting the door, what I saw before me made me gasp and drop my brief case.

There in front of me, was a 15 year old girl. She was at the table eating rice plain old rice, which is strange for people, but normal by her parents. She had beautiful flowing long brown hair and deep brown eyes. It was wearing that shocked me the most. She was wearing Nagisa's old high school uniform, which fits her well.

She turned to me and smiled. "Good morning, Dad."

Ushio looked at me with a confused look, seeing some new tears forming in my eyes. I couldn't help it. I tried so hard to hold them back, but sadly, that failed. Ushio got up and walked in front of me.

"Dad, why are you crying?" She asked me. I sniffed and wiped some of the tears on my sleeve. "Sorry." I said sadly. "You just look like Mom when she was in high school." Ushio probably didn't know what to say to that, because all she did was smile.

"Wow." We heard a voice behind us. We turned and saw Nagisa entering the room. "I see my old uniform fits you well. You look so beautiful, sweetie." She said to Ushio. Ushio went up to Nagisa and hugged her. "Thanks, Mom."

I looked back at the scene. A beautiful morning with my two girls. What could go wrong?

Suddenly, the door busted open. "Guess who came to see their favorite granddaughter?" I just had to say something.

Akio and Sanae walked in and yelled, "Happy First Day of High School, Ushio!"

"Sanae! Aki!" Ushio yelled with joy as she ran to hug her grandparent.

"Wow. You look just like Nagisa when she started high school." Sanae said as she hugged Ushio. "So I have been told." Ushio replied with a smile.

"I remember as if it was yesterday, I remember teaching Ushio how to play baseball." The old man said with tears in his eyes. "Now my little granddaughter is heading for high school. I can't believe it!" He sobbed as he hugged Ushio tighter.

"Ah…Aki. You're kind of crushing me." Ushio said, trying to regain her breath. The old-man let go and Ushio started to breathe heavily.

"What are you two doing here?" I asked them with a groan.

Akio gave me a glare. "What? Just because you two are the parents, doesn't mean we can't see little Shio head off to her first day as a freshman?" Akio asked with annoyance. He then sighed. "Let's just hope she turns out more like a perfect student like her mother and not a delinquent like her father."

"What was that, old man?" I yelled.

"So…" Sanae said, changing the subject. "You excited, Ushio?" She asked Ushio.

"I'm honestly nervous." Ushio said with a frown. Nagisa looked back at her and placed an arm around her shoulder.

"Don't worry, sweetie. You'll do fine." Nagisa said to her like a smile.

"As long as you don't bring any boys home." The old-man said with a stern look. I looked back at him with a glare. "Hey. Isn't that my line?"

"Sure. It could be. But I have a better plan on keeping boys away from her." Akio said as he rubbed his hands together in an evil way.

"Probably is going to fail, unlike my plan." I fought back, trying to beat the old man at 'who's plan on eliminating teenage boys from the Earth' was better.

"Would you two stop it?" Sanae yelled, stopping are child-like argument.

"You can't stop them, anyway." Nagisa said, joining in. And I thought she was on my side. "What are you two going to do, anyways. Let me guess…" Nagisa said as she placed her finger on her chin. "Dad's, your plan is to dress up like that rapper that you used when I worked as a waitress, and follow Ushio on her dates. As for Tomoya, you're going to call Sunohara from his company, team up, follow Ushio on dates, and if it goes wrong, you unleash Sunohara in his fit of rage and the boy ends up dead. Did I get that right?" Nagisa asked with a teasing smile.

Akio and I looked at each other with blushes, then we turned to Ushio, who looked like she was going to burst out laughing. We turned back to Nagisa and Sanae, who waited for our answers. "Yeah that's about (You're right) it." We both muttered. But the old man whispered in my ear, "Good thinking on the Sunohara thing."

"Would you stop trying to scare Ushio on her first day?" Sanae asked. I would have said more, but the house was echoed with a loud bus horn.

"That's my bus." Ushio said happily. She quickly went up to hug Sanae and Akio. "Good-bye, guys." She said with a smile.

"Make sure you don't forget to sign up for girls' softball, Shio." Akio said to her. That's right. About a month ago, Ushio told us she was going to sign up for softball when she becomes a freshman. She was very talented for baseball, with her awesome home-run hitting swings. We could all thank the old man for that, since Ushio would always go play baseball with him, after school.

"I won't forget, Aki." She said. Ushio turned and hugged Nagisa.

"Have a great day at school, Ushio." Nagisa whispered. Ushio smiled. "Thanks, Mom." They broke apart, but I saw Nagisa having some tears form into her eyes. She quickly wiped them away with her hands, deciding long ago that she would stop crying so much.

Now it was my turn. I hated it. Time went to fast for me. I remember as if it was yesterday. Ushio being born under her hopes and wishes (the ones only I could see), learning how to walk at the playground, her first Halloween, playing baseball in the back yard with the old man and I, and then, the trip to the field of flowers.

My thoughts were interrupted when Ushio ran to me and hugged me around the chest; I couldn't hold the tears back anymore, so I hugged her back, very tightly. Just like when I thought she was going to disappear from me in that other world. Yes, I still do remember that place.

"I love you, Daddy." She whispered to me. Another memory. Ushio, as a five year old, dying in my arms, telling me that she loved me. That made me cry even more.

"I love you too, Ushio." I sobbed back. After feeling like an eternity, Ushio let go of me and ran out the door, hurrying to her bus. Everyone gathered at the door. As we watched Ushio run, I could hear her humming Nagisa's 'Dango Family' song. Over the years, I kind grew found of that song.

I was brought back to reality when Nagisa placed her head on my shoulder. "She grows up so fast." She said with a smile. I placed my head on top of hers. "Too fast." I whispered to myself.

"I am so proud of her. Ushio brought so much happiness to us." Nagisa whispered.

I turned and watched Ushio go on the bus, but not before waving back to me. I then started to remember that I vision I had when I was re-untied with Nagisa. If it wasn't for Ushio, saving her and Nagisa's fate, none of this would have happened.

"Thank you, Ushio. For helping me make the right choice."

* * *

_Woo-hoo! I did it! I did it! Oh-yeah yeah yeah! No eating here tonight! Woo! Eating here tonight! No no no eating here tonight! You're on a diet!_

_This is, officially, the longest\t ONE-SHOT I have ever done. 14 pages. 14 PAGES PEOPLE! I am very proud of myself. _

_So tell me what you thought of it. Plus, the new scenes and lines I added. (Look at the number and see what I am talking about) You can do that by pressing that wonderful 'Review' button at the bottom. _

_Great. Now my step-dad is calling me a hermit for spending 3 hours in my room, working on this story. Perfect. Just perfect. Again, tell me what you thought. I accept criticism. _

_So excuse me while I go all Batman (disappearing in the shadows then attacking) on him for calling me a hermit. _


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